New Brunswick, NJ Animal Ordinances: Pet Store Rules (2026)

Chapter 6.04 defines a pet shop in Section 6.04.010 as any room or group of rooms, cage or exhibition pen, not part of a kennel, wherein dogs for sale are kept or displayed. A kennel is separate: an establishment that boards or sells dogs or breeds them for sale. A shelter is an establishment where dogs are received, housed and distributed without charge. Section 6.04.090 requires a license from the city clerk for each of these operations. The license cannot be transferred to another owner or different premises, and it covers the dogs the licensee keeps at the establishment, so no individual dog licenses are needed for them.

The application under Section 6.04.100 states the applicant's name and permanent and local address, the street address and a general description of the premises, the purposes for which the establishment is maintained, and the maximum number of dogs to be accommodated at any one time. Section 6.04.110 bars issuance until the proposed licensee submits a written statement from the health officer that the establishment complies with local and state rules governing location and sanitation. Every pet shop, kennel, shelter or pound license states its purpose and expires on the last day of June of each year (Section 6.04.120). The annual fee in Section 6.04.130 is $10.00 for a pet shop, $10.00 for a kennel accommodating ten or less dogs, $25.00 for a kennel accommodating more than ten, and no fee for a shelter or pound.

Under Section 6.04.140, the governing body can revoke a license on the recommendation of the state department of health or the health officer for failure to comply with health rules, after the owner has been afforded a hearing. Licensees must follow city ordinances and state health department rules on sanitation and the prevention of rabies and other diseases. The clerk reports each licensed pet shop to the state department of health within thirty days after issuance (Section 6.04.150). Section 6.04.160 bars any dog kept in a pet shop from leaving the premises except on leash or in a crate or other safe control. Cats for sale fall under the separate cattery definition in Section 6.08.030.